Fargo doctor suspects child abuse in Hubbard County toddler

PARK RAPIDS, Minn. - A Fargo doctor who examined a Hubbard County toddler in a case of suspected abuse said the 2½-year-old had 26 separate injuries that were strongly indicative of “non-accidental trauma.”

When a caseworker told the child’s mother about the documented injuries, Katrice Mae Lund allegedly said, “Yeah, it sucks, but bruises heal.”

Lund, 32, of St. Paul Park, is charged with malicious punishment of a child and child neglect/endangerment. Each charge carries a maximum penalty of five years in jail and/or a $10,000 fine upon conviction. She appeared in Hubbard County District Court on Monday.

The child is disabled and developmentally delayed. The criminal complaint charging Lund states the baby had been seen with multiple bruises throughout her body, missing clumps of hair and pinprick marks on the bottoms of her feet.

The investigation began when a family member brought her to St. Joseph’s Area Health Services on Oct. 17.

The child was subsequently referred to the Fargo doctor, who “found significant multiple bruises over multiple parts of her body, including a pattern bruise to her right leg,” the complaint states.